As a team of mules pulls your boat along the Delaware Canal, you’ll see New Hope from a new viewpoint… historic homes, quaint inns, secret alleys, artists’ workshops, outdoor cafes, a Victorian train station with its steam engine, fanciful gardens, ducks and geese and perhaps even a great blue heron. Boats depart starting at noon on Saturday and Sundays in April, weather permitting, daily May through October 31st from the Delaware River Canal Boat Company Landing. Inspired by the tremendous success of New York State’s Erie Canal, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania began building a 1,200-mile system of canals to connect Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Lake Erie. The 60-mile-long Delaware Canal is part of this great network. Completed in 1832, it runs from Bristol to Easton, where it connects the Lehigh Canal. In the most productive years, just prior to the Civil War, over 3,000 mule-drawn boats traveled up and down this route moving over one million tons of coal a year. The significance of the Delaware Canal was recognized in 1978 when it was designated a National historic landmark. It is preserved today as the most intact and fully-watered of America’s towpath canals.
Additional Information
- Hours of Operation:
CURRENTLY CLOSED DUE TO CANAL RE-CONSTRUCTION
Daily May thru October 31st: Noon to 4:30pm
June thru August: Noon to 6:00pm
Weather Permitting
- Features:
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Private Tours
